Insurance Law Monthly

Brexit was widely thought to have removed the possibility that a person injured tortiously elsewhere in the EU and entitled under the law of that country to bring a direct claim against the tortfeasor's insurers could bring proceedings in England, a right conferred by the Brussels Regulation Recast.

In Fitzgerald v Tully [2024] FCA 391, McElwaine J sitting in the Federal Court of Australia considered a claim for indemnity by an insured director under a directors and officers liability policy. Much of the case is taken up with discussion of whether the director was in breach of duty at all, and the court's conclusion that he was not in breach of duty rendered the other issues redundant. However, there is helpful discussion of the meaning of "claim" and of disclosure issues.

The decision of Her Honour Judge Kelly in Scotbeef Ltd v D&S Storage Ltd [2024] EWHC 341 (TCC); [2024] Lloyd's Rep IR 303 is the first significant substantive discussion of the Insurance Act 2015. Attention in this case was focused on section 9 of the 2015 Act, which requires all pre-contractual statements to be treated as representations and to be assessed on their merits under the duty of fair presentation rather than as absolute warranties permitting denial of liability for any breach.

In Hamsard One Thousand and Forty-Three Ltd v AE Insurance Brokers Ltd [2024] EWHC 262 (Comm); [2024] Lloyd's Rep IR 663 a series of allegations were made by the claimant against its insurance brokers, including failure to disclose material facts to insurers and failing to secure the required levels of cover.